The Fight Continues!

Dear Family and Friends,

The fight against cancer continues! Cancer has affected us all in one way or another. This year my daughter Bryanna and I have found a way we can help in the fight against this disease. Along with the staff and family members of Laguna Vista Preschool, we will be participating in a fun and exciting Relay for Life event in honor of my son Travin's classmate and friend who is currently battling her way through this disease.

Relay for Life is a unique way to raise money and awareness for the American Cancer Society. Bryanna and I will partake in a 24 hour walk/run event that involves teams of 10-12 members who will keep at least one member on the track for a scheduled period of time. The relay will be held at Hueneme High School and will begin Saturday May 1st at 10 am and end Sunday May 2nd at 10 am.

Relay for Life builds awareness of this dreaded disease and makes a difference in the lives of those affected by cancer HERE AND NOW! Our goal as a mother/daughter team is to raise $500. We are asking for your support for our efforts in the fight against cancer by helping us collect recyclables. If you live in our area, we can come by and collect any items that you save. If you do not live in the area and would like to help by collecting and turning in recyclables for us or if you would like to help by making a tax deductible contribution of $10 or more, please contact me via e-mail at shan_mall@yahoo.com.

Together we can make a difference! Thank you in advance for your support!

Remember, there is no finish line until we find a cure!!!

~St. Patrick's Day, Travin Style~

Travin and I shared an afternoon getting ready for his St. Patrick's Day party at school. We baked green cookies, with green frosting, and green sprinkles. He did a great job counting to 25 while he stirred the cookie batter. He decided that he wanted to make enough cookies to share with Bryanna's class and Kalyssa's class. So, we made enough cookies for three classrooms. The green cookies were a big hit at school. I even got a nice thank you card from a special 4th grade class. =)

Happy St. Patty's Day!!

Happy 6th Birthday Kalyssa!

My little girl turned 6 on March 1, 2010. It is hard to believe how fast the time has gone. It doesn't seem like that long ago that we were trying to get her to say "mama" and "dada" now my big kindergartner is reading to me. I remember watching her with tears in my eyes as she took her first steps in the living room. Now she is tying her own shoes before she sets off to venture her day.



My Kalyssa

She's an absolute joy, a beautiful girl. She came into my life and captured my heart. She embraces my soul with all of her might. She knows just what to do to push all the right buttons but it's hard not to smile when she giggles with glee. Her witty personality can entertain me for hours but can also make it hard to keep up with her adventurous ways. She likes to sing, she likes to dance, and knows just what it takes to create quite a mess. She often comes home with imaginary friends and can draw on things other than paper with permanent pens. She likes to host parties with all of her dolls and enjoys serving meals from her make-believe restaurant "Kalyssa's Cafe". She enjoys listening to stories of all different sorts and then goes off to create her own. She learns new talents everyday especially how to get things her very own way. At night when asleep my Kalyssa is so quiet. I often wonder how she can be capable of starting so many riots. Her eyes are so bright and her smile shines. Her kisses are soft and her hugs feel so warm. She can make you forget about the things that really don't matter.



The girls and I made these "special" butterfly snacks for Kalyssa's birthday celebration at school. She was very proud to share them with her classmates.

Hope

I had something truly amazing happen to me and I really wanted to share it. Moments like this don't happen very often. I am so fortunate to have had this opportunity.

After spending some quality family of five time this weekend, I sat down to do some research on anaplastic clear cell meningioma. This cancer has affected a beautiful and vibrant 4 year old little girl who is in Travin's preschool class.

On Friday, Travin's teacher shared with me the story of this amazing little girl. She was diagnosed with this cancer when she was 20 months old. After radiation treatments, chemotherapy, and multiple surgeries to remove one tumor from her brain stem and one from her spinal column, things began to look up. She had been in remission for over a year. Last month, her family received the devastating news that another growth had appeared but this time, the lesion is growing around the basilar artery, which happens to be the main artery that supplies blood to the brain. This makes the tumor inoperable. Travin's teacher asked me if I could write a letter for a Relay for Life event on behalf of her and the preschool class. I immediately said yes. I spend time in and out of Travin's classroom helping out with as much as I possibly can so, I have personally spent my time talking, reading, and playing with most of the children in the classroom. Looking at her, one could guess that she had to have battled something in her lifetime. It has always been so easy to see past that because she truly is an amazing little girl. She is a happy child who always has something to share. Her personality is one that immediately draws you in.

I have to say that I have shed my fair share of tears over the past couple of days. This is one of those situations that truly allows you to reflect upon your own children. I feel so incredibly blessed to have three happy and healthy children running around driving me crazy day in and day out!! This afternoon, I gave my letter to the teacher who in turn passed it on to the mother of this little girl. I was a little nervous about what I had written because, I have never been in her shoes. I can't even begin to understand what she is feeling let alone what she is going through. I knew in my heart as I wrote the letter that I was doing something so incredibly powerful. Relay for Life is such an amazing opportunity for so many people to get involved with the fight against cancer. After she read the letter, she looked at me with tears in her eyes and said thank you. She said that I described her daughter so perfectly and worded everything so beautifully. She told me that I have truly honored her daughter in one of the most amazing ways possible. I was speechless. I didn't know what to say or how to react. My eyes immediately filled up with tears.

On the weekend of May 1st, I will be a part of a Relay for Life event that will take place at Hueneme High School. I will help the teachers lead a team on a 24 hour fight against cancer in honor of this beautiful and amazing little girl. I have no words to describe how I feel to be able to a part of this event.

The start of something new

Well here it goes. At the request of several family members and friends, I have officially decided to take the plunge into the world of blogging. This is a new process for me so please be patient while I attempt to learn how to navigate this blogger site. I would love any advice or input from my fellow blogger friends during this process :) My goal is to keep family and friends updated on our family of five as well as the many "expeditions" that lie in front of us.

As a military family, it is safe to say that life for us is constantly changing. In just 3 short months, our family will be moving 1600 miles from our current location in sunny Southern California to Shreveport, Louisiana. The emotions in our house range from excitement to nervousness, to being a little scared. This move is going to be quite a big one for all of us. This will be the first official move for the kids. Our last move was a 2 hour drive down the 101 freeway from Vandenberg AFB located near Lompoc to Naval Base Port Hueneme located near Oxnard. Bryanna was 4 and Kalyssa was barely walking when we accepted the keys to our house. Somehow, we have been fortunate enough to stay in California close to family and friends for the past 8 years. It has truly been amazing to be able to share all of the little moments with so many of our loved ones.

Jason and I have done our best to keep an open mind as well as providing the kids with as many resources as possible to help them with the transition. We have heard a lot of positive things about Barksdale AFB as well as the surrounding areas. We are both looking forward to the many opportunities that lie ahead of us. At the end of this month, the two of us will head south to begin our house hunting process. We are very excited to take this next step in our lives.

Stay tuned....Our expedition is only just beginning! :)